We recently published a list of 10 AI Stocks Investors are Watching Closely. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) stands against other AI stocks investors are watching closely.
President Donald Trump has only recently announced the Stargate initiative, claiming it to be “the largest AI infrastructure project by far in history”. According to him, the project would help keep “the future of technology” in the US. However, a Bloomberg report reveals how Elon Musk is openly questioning whether the companies that have joined Trump’s announcement, promising hundreds of billions of dollars in artificial intelligence, could follow through on them.
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Could this be a sign of an early difference of opinion within the White House? Only hours after the announcement, Musk took to his platform, X, to reveal that the companies don’t have the funds.
“They don’t actually have the money. SoftBank has well under $10B secured. I have that on good authority”.
Contrary to Musk’s claims, Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, had his own statements to make on X. Altman posted that Musk’s claims are wrong and that he has been upset because this initiative could compete with his Elon Musk’s own AI endeavors.
“Wrong, as you surely know. Want to come visit the first site already under way? This is great for the country. I realize what is great for the country isn’t always what’s optimal for your companies, but in your new role I hope you’ll mostly put US first”.
— Sam Altman
Musk is leading Trump’s government efficiency efforts and will also be advising him on spending. The billionaire, ever since leaving OpenAI’s board in 2018, has been engaged in a feud with Altman. Sources close to Stargate also reveal that they are not sure how Musk has arrived at the figure. According to them, the company is well-positioned to deploy $100 billion.
“I think this will be the most important project of this era. We wouldn’t be able to do this without you, Mr. President”.
-Sam Altman.
In light of this, Bloomberg revealed that Trump has, on several occasions, promoted private-sector investment promises that never went on to materialize. One of these failed promises has been the failed Foxconn factory project which Trump deemed as the “Eighth Wonder of the World”. No wonder the Stargate announcement has sparked skepticism regarding the project’s completion.
For this article, we selected AI stocks by going through news articles, stock analysis, and press releases. These stocks are also popular among hedge funds.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 99
Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) is an automotive and clean energy company that leverages advanced artificial intelligence in its autonomous driving technology and robotics initiatives. One of the biggest analyst calls for Tuesday, January 21st, was for Tesla Inc. Piper Sandler reiterated an “Overweight” rating on Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) and raised the firm’s price target to $500 from $315. According to the firm, investors have begun appreciating Tesla’s potential in real-world artificial intelligence. The analyst told investors in the research note that as a result of this, portfolio managers are entertaining the possibility of the stock going up. Moreover, once the company is done with its current car launch plans, it will redirect its focus toward its full-driving software (FSD). The firm hasn’t estimated the impact of other ambiguous AI endeavors but is optimistic that new-age opportunities like Optimus robots and neural-net-training-as-a-service will shape the company’s thesis. According to the firm, Tesla’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) first half of 2025 “may be choppy,” but it remains its top “buy-and-hold idea”.
“Regarding our views on the stock, TSLA is still our #1 buy-and-hold idea, and accordingly, we’re boosting our price target to $500 (up from $315)”.
Overall, TSLA ranks 2nd on our list of AI stocks investors are watching closely. While we acknowledge the potential of TSLA as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than TSLA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.